Regardless of the source, the arguments of pro-sex industry advocates and proponents have a common theme: the industry springs from a liberal mindset and frees women and men, sexually, politically, and spiritually. Part of this logic is that sexuality--particularly women's sexuality--has been oppressed historically and that the sex industry offers women and men the liberating possibility of unbridled sexual expression.

This logic ignores the fact that the use of women in prostitution as well as other forms of human sexual commodification has existed for at least as long as there has been a historical record. Thus, if sexual commodification were freeing, then sexual oppression would be uncommon or, more likely, exist only as some curious historical fact...

Thus, 'liberal' support for the sex industry is only a mask for the traditional face of prostitution. A sexually freeing or liberating industry offering unique and new experiences of choice and revolutionary change for women and children would not be characterized by bodies being exchanged for money or other payment. Indeed, the exchange of bodies for money or other payment is a very old and un-revolutionary practice. Prior to sex industry rhetoric, this was referred to as bondage, slavery, or indentured servitude. (pp.309-10)

Profitable Exploits: Lap Dancing in the UK

...Four clubs in Glasgow and two in London were visited in order to observe and interview dancers, customers and staff...

Twenty dancers and fifteen customers were interviewed in the six clubs visited.

Public opinion was polled in Glasgow and London. Club owners, police officers, women’s groups, journalists and licensing officials were also interviewed...

Clubs have managed to gain a certain air of respectability, partly due to endorsements from a string of celebrities, including Robbie Williams and Sophie Dahl. The National Westminster bank has a corporate account with a lap dance club, as do other city firms in London (Eaves Housing, 2003)...

What is Lap Dancing?
A variety of dances are offered in lap-dance clubs and are performed both in the main areas and, in the majority of venues, in a more private area that is often curtained off. ‘Pole dancing’ refers to a ‘cabaret’ performance in the main club area and is the element most commonly used in TV and film representation. ‘Table dancing’ is performed near the customer’s seat, with the dancer’s breasts eye level to the customer. ‘Couch dancing’ entails the dancer standing over a customer sat on a couch, hanging her breasts over him. The US version of ‘lap dancing’ requires the woman to straddle the man’s lap and grind or brush against him. A variation involves the woman dancing between the customer’s legs while sliding down in the chair so that her thighs are rubbing the customer’s genitals as she moves. This is also known in the US as ‘friction dancing’ (Frank, 2003)...

In the UK, pole dancing is becoming popular amongst some female celebrities as a form of exercise. Daryl Hannah, Heather Graham and Kate Moss are all apparently taking pole-dancing lessons, and Sarah Cox and Zoë Ball have had their own poles installed at home[18]...

Gantt (2002) describes the relationship between dancer and customer as a form of ‘counterfeit intimacy’, and focuses on how dancers create an illusion of being attracted to the customers in order to gain advantage of them, both financially and behaviourally...

A report by the Lillith Project (2002) focused on seven lap-dance clubs in the London borough of Camden. It concludes that the existence of lap-dancing clubs has a negative effect on the community, that areas where lap-dance clubs operate have become ‘no-go’ for women who feel uncomfortable walking by, and that men have been harassed by personnel offering them sexual services[24]...

During another tribunal hearing lost by Spearmint Rhino, a former manager at the chain, Lee Freer, claimed he saw a pole dancer perform oral sex on a co-owner of the club, in a private booth. The former manager said sexual relationships between bosses at Spearmint Rhino branches and the lap dancers were commonplace, as was the sale and consumption of illegal drugs[30]...

In 1997, three Lithuanian women were deported after being trafficked into the UK to work in an Edinburgh lap-dancing club[32]...

All clubs promised ‘luxury’ in their advertising, and appealed to potential clientele as a ‘better class’ of person than those who frequent strip clubs, for example, by using the term ‘gentlemen’s club’...

Several of the dancers reported that they were sent text messages by the ‘management’ on the days they were needed to work. One dancer noted (GD2) that this meant she could not arrange other work, either in clubs or elsewhere. All dancers interviewed paid money to the owners in order to rent a space to dance; the amount varied across the clubs. Although the women are self-employed, they are required to perform pole and cabaret dances in the main club area at the request of management...

There is also evidence of negligent security from former staff members. In 2003, a former security chief at the Spearmint Rhino club in Uxbridge, West London, Johnny Singh, gave evidence at a tribunal stating that management at the club took the attitude that:

Anything went as long as it made money…bosses turned a blind eye to girls fondling each other on stage, groping men and committing sex acts. During my time there, I saw constant drug abuse, prostitution and sexual misconduct. I couldn't do anything to stop it.[39]

Club management tend to place responsibility for the breaking of house rules solely on the dancers...

The private dance is the only legitimate way for the dancers to make money in the clubs. The intermittent ‘cabaret’, and individual pole dances by selected dancers that take place in the main club area, serve only to advertise the dancers and entertain customers. The dancers are not paid for these activities... There is no guarantee, even on busy nights, that the dancers will earn enough to cover their costs, let alone generate income...

None of the dancers interviewed in the Glasgow clubs were satisfied with their working conditions... There were no water coolers or fridges in which to keep drinks, even though this is a condition of the license for Seventh Heaven, Diamond Dolls and The Truffle Club. As a result, the dancers have to purchase drinks from the bar at full price...

All dancers in lap-dance clubs are self-employed, relying on tips and income from private dances. Dancers pay between £35 and £100 per night to the club management for ‘rent’ of the facilities[40], such as the poles, cabaret areas, private dance booths and VIP suites. Weekend rates are higher... All of the women interviewed reported that they had often lost money by working at the club when their earnings failed to cover rent, clothing, travel, drinks and childcare. Some club owners allow debt to accumulate, which can leave the dancers desperate to ‘catch up’...

In addition to daily expenses, dancers at the four Glasgow clubs, and Spearmint Rhino, London, are advised to purchase specialist clothing from an individual visiting the club who runs her own business[41]. In at least one club, the women are explicitly told that they should not buy clothes from anywhere else or make their own, in case they do not fit the ‘house style’. Most clubs also specify particular shoes that several of the women refer to as ‘porn shoes’. They are tall platforms with spiked heels that are apparently ‘very uncomfortable’ to dance in...

Two of the dancers stated that management regularly chose their outfits, and that they were given no choice about wearing them. “I have two children, who I have to support by doing this. I feel really yucky prancing around in a school uniform, because I feel I’m encouraging perverts who come to the club to abuse children”...

All club owners denied that the lap dancing business was part of the sex industry, but all, without exception, accused other club owners of running disreputable clubs offering sexual services. Their own clubs, in contrast, were seen as part of the leisure industry...

Two of the ‘students’ also did ‘glamour modelling’ and said there were other dancers who did this. GD5 explained that the club owners encouraged the women to model for ‘adult’ publications, as it is good for business. “If my picture is in the Sunday Sport and it says I work at a certain club, the men who like the look of me might decide to come and see me in the flesh. Therefore, the club only allows you to do it if you can guarantee mentioning the club”...

One woman talked about being “pressurised” into glamour modelling by management. She also spoke of “some of the girls” being upset at discovering that photographs of them had been used to advertise the club without their knowledge or consent (GD15). There was also evidence of some customers having used their mobile telephone cameras to take pictures of the women whilst naked...

A dancer at Legs’ n’ Co said that some of the dancers suffered from bulimia and/or anorexia, and have low self-esteem. “If anyone has a tiny bit of cellulite, or is slightly overweight, she is pulled by management and told to do something about it. That can make you feel like shit. It’s as if they own our bodies. We’re even told when to shave our public hair” (GD11). Six women overall across the four clubs had breast enlargement scars under their arms.

One woman admitted there was some drug use among the dancers. “Not here, but other in clubs I worked in, some of the women would be using cocaine or amphetamines, either to keep their weight down, or keep awake during the night shift I suppose” (GD11)...

All three women at Spearmint Rhino identified having to “massage men’s ego’s all evening” (LD3) as the hardest part of the job. One dancer explained:

The dancing, and even taking your clothes off, is easy. You just cut off and become someone else. But having to plaster a smile on your face, and pretend the men are fascinating is exhausting sometimes (LD1)...

Several of the dancers used alcohol in the clubs, and in all of the clubs visited, as aside from The Flying Scotsman, one or more dancers stated that management encouraged the use of alcohol, primarily by making it a condition for the dancers to accept any alcoholic drink customers offered to buy them. Thus, management are profiting from the dancers’ alcohol use...

The dancers interviewed all expressed ambivalence towards the customers... Common complaints included:

• Drunkenness
• Heckling during cabaret shows
• Trying to grab the women during private dances
• Asking for sexual services
• Touching their own genitals
• Trying to barter down prices for private dances

...This study has revealed the complex process and set of conditions in which dancers become more susceptible to requests or suggestions to sell sex. The lack of employment rights, for some women the experience of accumulating debt, expectations of the customers, fierce competition, and a link in public perceptions between lap dancer and stripper/prostitute, create an overall climate where the selling and buying of sex on the premises becomes more likely...

One customer said that:

Now that the police are clamping down on kerb crawlers it’s easier to come in here and pick up a bird. Some of them used to work the Cross, but come here now, because it’s the same punters. Everyone knows you can get one here (LC4)...

Approximately half of the customers in Glasgow came to the club looking for sex. Four of the regular visitors claimed they had had sex with a dancer on the premises...

In order to gain a ‘snapshot’ sense of public opinion, a total of 20 individuals were polled outside three lap-dance clubs: Seventh Heaven and The Truffle Club in Glasgow, and Spearmint Rhino[57], London. Three-quarters (n=15) said they would rather not work or live in an area near a lap-dancing club. A range of reasons were given, including: “I do not want to see scantily clad girls on my way home”; “I think it is demeaning to women”; and “I do not want stag nights taking over the town centre”...

All those polled near Seventh Heaven were negative about the club’s presence. One respondent said that customers leaving the premises had propositioned his partner outside it. Another had observed a bouncer having a ‘fierce row’ with a customer outside the club...

One woman questioned worked in a restaurant near Spearmint Rhino until approximately 1am five nights a week. She walked past the club on her journey home, and said:

I always feel intimidated by the club and the customers coming in and out. I have been insulted by them, and even the bouncers sometimes. The men in groups are the worst. One of the young waitresses was flashed at by a stag group (LP5).

Another respondent lived in the block of flats above Spearmint Rhino.

I would not have bought the flat if I had realised the level of disruption the club would cause. The noise is unbearable (LP2)...

In May 2003, Glasgow CoC conducted a snapshot survey of fifty-two city centre businesses and found that three-quarters (n=39) believed that lap-dancing clubs would damage the reputation of the city. The survey also showed that almost half (n=19) of respondents were concerned about the safety of their staff in the vicinity of the clubs.

In a press release marking the publication of the survey, CoC chief executive stated: “The results of this survey bear out my initial opinion that such businesses could be counter-productive to the image of the entire city centre.[58]” The current Policy Manager at the CoC noted: “Businesses in Glasgow do not want lap dancing clubs in their city. They attract the wrong kind of business, and keep the right kind away” (Interview, May 2004)...

The Women’s Support Project (WSP) said it is regularly contacted by members of the public concerned about the effect the clubs are having on their city. The coordinator explained:

Women avoid the areas where the clubs are. There’s a very popular pub near one of them that my friends and me used to go to regularly, but since the club opened I haven’t been back since. There are tales of groups of drunken men who are all fired up to sexually humiliate women, so we don’t want to bear the brunt of it.” WSP also have anecdotal evidence of women being moved around the country to work in different clubs, in order to fill spaces created by the transient nature of the business (Interview, May 2004)...

...club owners tend to absolve themselves of any responsibility if sexual services are found to be on occurring or being arranged on the premises, yet at the same time there is some indication that they encourage the dancers to project an air of sexual availability to customers. By making it difficult for the dancers to earn an adequate living legitimately, through requiring the payment of ‘rent’ for each shift worked in the clubs, and by hiring excess numbers of dancers at any one time, club owners and managers also create a series of structural conditions that can lead some dancers to offer sexual services in order to survive financially. This is not to say that there is evidence of significant numbers of dancers engaging in prostitution activities, but that the clubs are run in a way that both implicitly encourages the customers to seek sexual services from the dancers, and means that some dancers will offer them...

The requirement for dancers to ‘glamour model’ to advertise the club, and the evidence that some customers take covert photographs of the dancers whilst naked, suggests links between lap-dancing clubs and pornography...

4) Don’t pull my thong up during a dance and ask me if it felt good. IT DOES NOT FEEL GOOD.

6) No I will not just let you “slip it in real quick” for $50 more bucks.

7) Yeah, my tits are real. As real as my affection for you...

9) Stop asking me out. You’re a smelly, fat loser and the only reason I’m smiling and cooing at you is because I want your money. Outside of the club I wouldn’t even fart your way.

12) Don’t bitch at me about the $10 non-alcoholic beer either. Hide a bottle of Jack in your coat pocket next time like everyone else does.

13) My horniness is in direct proportion to your income...

19) SHOWER FIRST, you nasty fuck!

20) I had a feeling you weren’t going to tip me, so I took extra care to rub my lip gloss on your collar and wear extra glitter lotion and obnoxious perfume before our dance.

22) Stop asking me why I do this job and try to get all psychologically analytical on me. For the money, you moron, that’s why...

24) NO, I will not take a dime sac for payment. I can tell it’s oregano anyway you stupid motherfucker!...

31) Girls–what’s with the pole smell? Can we do a little hygiene check? Nothing than worse than twirling around the pole and getting a whiff of stale pussy...

A Study of Crime and Adult Entertainment, Police Department Memorandum, City of Tucson, Arizona, (May 11, 1990):

[A Caveat: If you are not accustomed to criminal justice studies of explicit alternative and criminal sexual behavior, please approach the parent study document with caution.]

In sum, a covert observational study. Investigating officers found that many of employees of the adult-oriented businesses were prostitutes who were offering private shows where customers could, for a price, observe them performing live sex acts. For “the right price” customers would be allowed to “touch the dancers.” Undercover operatives also learned that customers could hire the dancers to engage in acts of prostitution, and in some instances, these acts actually occurred on the premises with the knowledge of the management. Underage females were also being hired to dance nude. The report also confirmed many health-related perspectives: Adult entertainment establishments provide an environment and atmosphere that is conducive to high risk sexual behaviors and practices with respect to sexually transmitted diseases (HIV and hepatitis B included).